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Hockey Cards - Part III

BWJM

BWJM

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Mar 16, 2011
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My latest Canucks cards added to the PC!
 
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frightenedinmatenum2

frightenedinmatenum2

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Sep 30, 2023
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Orange County Prison
tmlms13 said:
I am new to getting my cards graded, thinking about doing my first submission, but want to know some people's thoughts. I bought some so I know how it works pretty well but never the other way around

It's mostly young guns and Future Watch Auto, in mid-late 00's since I only ever bought UD1/2 and SPA. And only 1 or 2 boxes a year. So like they're all retired/retiring soon and be HOFers. So they're valuable but not like it's The Cup or anything.

I have some questions, is it worth it if I know my card won't get a 10, and probably not a 9. I'd be happy with an 8? Like my one Crosby YG came out of the box with a bad corner. So I'm paranoided it will get like a 6 or something.

How far down the value should I get cards graded, like the Perry, Getzlaf, Carter, Staals, Backstrom, Kessel, Pietrangelo, Checklists of the world? Like by the time I pay for the grading fee, insurance, shipping etc and all in US dollars it's gets expensive.

I don't plan on flipping them on ebay but I'm willing to invest if I do ever decide to sell
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Except for maybe the Crosby YG, don't get anything graded. Spend $50 on some decent holders and call it a day.

Grading is a scam. With that said, it's worth doing in some scenarios because the majority in the hobby don't view it that way. It's snake oil because there is no consistent objective criteria when your card is graded. You can send in the same card multiple times and get very different grades. There is criteria they look at, but it clearly is not consistent enough.

I would only send in less in-demand or lower-value cards if you are proficient in pre-grading. Which means, you look at the same criteria that the grading companies supposedly consider, and look for issues that would prevent your card from grading in a BGS 9.5+ or a PSA 10.

In a lot of cases, even a PSA 9 or BGS 9.5 won't increase the value enough to cover the cost of grading. Anything lower than that and the card loses value or at best is on par with raw before accounting for the wasted cost of grading.

Otherwise, I would only get an 4-5 figure type card graded prior to selling because the upside is very high that it's worth gambling the cost of the grade.

A consideration with grading is that you're effectively buying a stake in the reputation of the grading company relative to the prominence of the graded card in the hobby. For example, MNT 9.5 Young Guns do not sell at a premium, BGS 9.5 do sell at a premium. This is because as it currently stands, BGS is the most popular grading company for modern hockey, and nobody cares about MNT or the other fly-by-night companies.

With that said, there are numerous scandals in the grading industry, and someone may one day overtake BGS or PSA, or there might be a controversy that makes collectors lose trust in either company. It's unlikely at this point, but it's possible that a competitor could become the gold standard over either of those two. So if you aren't selling anytime soon, it doesn't make sense to effectively buy a stake in the reputation of a grading company, that may not be valuable in 10-20 years when you decide to sell your card.
 
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Hunter368

Hunter368

RIP lomiller1, see you in the next life buddy.
Nov 8, 2011
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Best company to send cards to, to get graded?

People send them via UPS or something insured To company?
 
NYRfan39

NYRfan39

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Dec 29, 2011
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Hunter368 said:
Best company to send cards to, to get graded?

People send them via UPS or something insured To company?
Click to expand...
I think for sports cards, in general, PSA is the top dog. At least for older vintage cards, PSA is by far the best. As for modern cards? Im still going to go with PSA, maybe BGS.
 
yada

yada

move 2 dallas 4 work
Nov 6, 2006
11,692
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watching happy pony
Hunter368 said:
Best company to send cards to, to get graded?

People send them via UPS or something insured To company?
Click to expand...

If its for money PSA for some reason generally is highest. If its for you feel safe with any of PSA, CGCs card grading, BGS, or SGC. All of these are seen as legit trustworthy graders. Also if for you choose either who you think will have the fastest turnaround times on grading or what slab you like the most.

Personally i live near dallas so i can drop cards off at BGS and they have the best looking slab. If i was to go another route id either go CGC or SGC
 
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miscs75

miscs75

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Jul 2, 2014
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Hunter368 said:
Best company to send cards to, to get graded?

People send them via UPS or something insured To company?
Click to expand...
If you can turn something into a BGS Black Label, nothing can beat it (10 on all 4 sub grades). PSA is severely overrated in terms of grading but people are still obsessed with it.
 
tmlms13

tmlms13

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Apr 11, 2012
6,882
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Waterloo, Ontario
Gaylord Q Tinkledink said:
Crosby graded is worth it.

Do an ebay search for those rookies graded for which company you're going with and see if it's worth it in your opinion.

If you're going with Beckett and it's for yourself and the cost isn't really an issue, I'd go for lesser cards as I like the slabs beckett has. PSA seems more generous with their grading, but their slabs aren't as nice.
Click to expand...

frightenedinmatenum2 said:
Except for maybe the Crosby YG, don't get anything graded. Spend $50 on some decent holders and call it a day.

Grading is a scam. With that said, it's worth doing in some scenarios because the majority in the hobby don't view it that way. It's snake oil because there is no consistent objective criteria when your card is graded. You can send in the same card multiple times and get very different grades. There is criteria they look at, but it clearly is not consistent enough.

I would only send in less in-demand or lower-value cards if you are proficient in pre-grading. Which means, you look at the same criteria that the grading companies supposedly consider, and look for issues that would prevent your card from grading in a BGS 9.5+ or a PSA 10.

In a lot of cases, even a PSA 9 or BGS 9.5 won't increase the value enough to cover the cost of grading. Anything lower than that and the card loses value or at best is on par with raw before accounting for the wasted cost of grading.

Otherwise, I would only get an 4-5 figure type card graded prior to selling because the upside is very high that it's worth gambling the cost of the grade.

A consideration with grading is that you're effectively buying a stake in the reputation of the grading company relative to the prominence of the graded card in the hobby. For example, MNT 9.5 Young Guns do not sell at a premium, BGS 9.5 do sell at a premium. This is because as it currently stands, BGS is the most popular grading company for modern hockey, and nobody cares about MNT or the other fly-by-night companies.

With that said, there are numerous scandals in the grading industry, and someone may one day overtake BGS or PSA, or there might be a controversy that makes collectors lose trust in either company. It's unlikely at this point, but it's possible that a competitor could become the gold standard over either of those two. So if you aren't selling anytime soon, it doesn't make sense to effectively buy a stake in the reputation of a grading company, that may not be valuable in 10-20 years when you decide to sell your card.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. I might then just do like 5-10 then. I've always liked BGS holders too, and their system (4 indv), better but PSA everything I see in articles is better for value.

So like my list would be something like... look ok?
Crosby YG
OV YG (x2)
Kane YG
Stamkos YG (x2)
Lundqvist FWA
Malkin FWA
Giroux YG High Gloss - funny story, I actually missed that it was a HG opening the packs, then at the end of the box I noticed I had 7 young guns.

I like you point about a 3rd party rising and buying a stake in a company that could flop one day...... I read about a company that is using AI to grade to address the consistency problem can't remember name. That might be the future.

Again thanks for the advice.
 
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miscs75

miscs75

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Jul 2, 2014
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The Kingslayer said:
$400 for a box of Series 2? Is this for real? Holy hell.
Click to expand...
It is when you know what all me retailers like Clouts N Chara did. Canceled quite a bit of preorders claiming they didn’t get the proper allotment. They halted presale to jack the prices up after release.
 
miscs75

miscs75

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Jul 2, 2014
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Muffin said:
I’ve got a few boxes reserved at around $200. Most places let you preorder series 2 for cheaper if you brought some series 1.

Thinking I might just flip the boxes instead of opening them at this point.
Click to expand...
A few were doing package deals to force people into purchasing s1. I like the curveball they threw at us with revamp of the product. Cuts down on base substantially while keeping insert odds the same. The deluxe parallel however should just go into the Atlantic Ocean since it’s overall pointless between the burst (silver, red and gold) plus both the HG and exclusive parallels. The silver burst seems to take the place of the French since it’s the lowest of the value with similar odds of 1 per box.
 
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Dr Pepper

Dr Pepper

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Dec 9, 2005
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miscs75 said:
It is when you know what all me retailers like Clouts N Chara did. Canceled quite a bit of preorders claiming they didn’t get the proper allotment. They halted presale to jack the prices up after release.
Click to expand...

I got into CnC breaks a few years back, thought it was fun for a while and even lucked into a few hits along the way but had to stop because I was spending too much on those random team breaks and walking away empty handed. Nowadays I'll just get the odd blaster from Walmart or one of those 7-11 packs with the guaranteed auto/jersey patch, just for fun.

I watch guys like zeeree and Packman on Youtube if I want to see monster hits. :laugh:
 
miscs75

miscs75

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Jul 2, 2014
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Dr Pepper said:
I got into CnC breaks a few years back, thought it was fun for a while and even lucked into a few hits along the way but had to stop because I was spending too much on those random team breaks and walking away empty handed. Nowadays I'll just get the odd blaster from Walmart or one of those 7-11 packs with the guaranteed auto/jersey patch, just for fun.

I watch guys like zeeree and Packman on Youtube if I want to see monster hits. :laugh:
Click to expand...
I did CNC breaks when Panini was in its hockey height from like 11-12 through 13-14. They got stale quick honestly. Breaks became boring and shipping is too expensive. I’m in the US so I’ve found substantially more entertaining and cheaper breakers thanks to Facebook. I do a case of flagship each year so breaking isn’t worth it unless I want to chase team specific stuff for the PC.
 
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Selanne00008

Selanne00008

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Jun 2, 2006
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NYC - UES
I sent in a Jason Robertson The Cup Rookie Patch Auto Home jersey paralell card about a year ago last winter. It's the one with 4 patch section on the corners of the card.

Never got any update from Upper Deck, but just the other day the card showed up in a random bubble mailer style envelope. I'll take it!!
 
Mr Kot

Mr Kot

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Jan 15, 2022
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Yeah f*** that, I'll just buy opeechee and be satisfied with that. Not paying 400+ for the slight possibility of Bedard rookie.
 
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miscs75

miscs75

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Jul 2, 2014
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Satan said:
2023-24 UDS2 tins pre-ordering for ... $175 CAD lmfao. Context: UDS1 tins are $65 CAD

breakawaysc.com

2023-24 UPPER DECK SERIES 2 HOCKEY TIN

Purchase a 2023-24 Upper Deck Series 2 Hockey Tin at Breakaway Sports Cards for $149.99! 8 packs per box, 12 cards per pack!
breakawaysc.com breakawaysc.com
Click to expand...
Yeah, meth is a hell of a drug with those prices.

Mr Kot said:
Yeah f*** that, I'll just buy opeechee and be satisfied with that. Not paying 400+ for the slight possibility of Bedard rookie.
Click to expand...
Find a reliable LCS that doesn’t gauge prices and you won’t be dropping $400 for S2.
 
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